BEIJING - Chinese stocks closed higher on Thursday, with the benchmark Shanghai Composite Index up 0.18 percent to 3,461.15 points.

The Shenzhen Component Index closed 1.17 percent higher at 10,534.58 points.

The combined turnover of these two indices stood at 1.31 trillion yuan (about $183.16 billion), down from 1.38 trillion yuan on the previous trading day.

Shares in the bio-medicine, printing and packaging sectors led the gains, while those in the papermaking and oil industries suffered the most.

The ChiNext Index, tracking China's Nasdaq-style board of growth enterprises, gained 1.9 percent to close at 2,164.09 points Thursday.